Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) abruptly terminated its collaboration with telehealth company Hims & Hers Health (NYSE:HIMS) on June 23, 2025, citing concerns about “illegal mass compounding and deceptive marketing” of Wegovy knockoffs that “put patient safety at risk.”
The shocking announcement sent HIMS shares plummeting 28.98% to $45.61 in Monday trading, while Novo Nordisk’s stock fell 5.16% to $69.96.
The partnership, which had lasted just over one month since its April announcement, was intended to expand affordable access to obesity treatments through Hims & Hers’ telehealth platform. Instead, it ended in dramatic fashion as Novo accused its former partner of continuing to sell unauthorized compounded versions of its blockbuster weight-loss drug despite their collaboration.
Novo Nordisk and Hims & Her Health: The Collaboration’s Rise and Dramatic Fall
The partnership began with great fanfare in April 2025, when Novo Nordisk and Hims & Hers announced a “long-term collaboration designed to make proven obesity care and treatments more accessible, more affordable, and more connected for millions of Americans.”
The deal offered FDA-approved Wegovy through Hims & Hers’ platform at $599 per month, marking what both companies called “the first step in a long-term collaboration roadmap.” Dave Moore, Executive Vice President of Novo Nordisk, had praised the partnership, saying “we are pleased that Hims & Hers is making this offering available this week to people living with obesity.”
However, the relationship soured quickly as Novo Nordisk discovered that “Hims & Hers Health, Inc. has failed to adhere to the law which prohibits mass sales of compounded drugs under the false guise of ‘personalization’ and are disseminating deceptive marketing that put patient safety at risk.”
The Danish pharmaceutical giant was particularly concerned about compounded semaglutide products that used active ingredients manufactured by “foreign suppliers in China” that had never been inspected or approved by the FDA. According to a Brookings Institution report cited by Novo, “a large share of those Chinese suppliers were never inspected by the FDA, and many that were inspected had drug quality assurance violations.”
Dave Moore stated bluntly: “Our expectation was that [Hims & Hers’] business focus would transfer toward real, safe, approved medications,” but the company continued offering cheaper knockoffs alongside the authentic Wegovy products.
The termination was swift and decisive, with Moore noting that “Novo Nordisk will not incur any fees from terminating the collaboration, as it was established through a third-party that manages the drugmaker’s direct-to-consumer online pharmacy.”
HIMS, NVO Stock Plunge After “Long-Term” Collaboration Comes to Aburpt End
The market reaction was immediate and brutal for both companies involved. HIMS shares fell 22% to $50.02 in premarket trading before continuing their decline to close down 28.98% at $45.61. The stock had opened the day at $48.16 after closing Friday at $64.22, representing a devastating single-day loss for investors. Trading volume surged to over 55 million shares, nearly double the average daily volume of 39.8 million, as panicked investors rushed to exit positions.
Novo Nordisk didn’t escape unscathed either, with shares falling 6.5% by 1315 GMT, extending an earlier decline that had already pushed the stock lower. The company closed at $69.96, down $3.81 or 5.16% from the previous session.
Despite the significant single-day decline, Novo’s massive $309.3 billion market capitalization provided some cushion compared to HIMS’s $10.2 billion valuation. The pharmaceutical giant’s stock has been under pressure recently, with year-to-date performance showing a 17.09% decline and one-year returns down 49.74%.
Citi analyst Daniel Grosslight warned that the end of the collaboration “increases Hims & Hers’ legal risk substantially,” noting surprise that the original partnership didn’t include efforts to curb the telehealth company’s compounding activities.
The analyst community had been questioning whether HIMS’s “personalized” dose offerings actually qualified as legitimate medical customization or represented unauthorized mass production of copycat drugs. With regulatory scrutiny intensifying and their major pharmaceutical partner now gone, HIMS faces an uncertain path forward in the lucrative but legally complex weight-loss medication market.
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Neither the author, Tim Fries, nor this website, The Tokenist, provide financial advice. Please consult our website policy prior to making financial decisions.
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